Chemokines, a specialized family of small cytokines, play a pivotal role in directing immune cell trafficking and are organized into four subfamilies (CC, CXC, CX3C, and XC) based on conserved cysteine residue presence.

These molecules bind to specific G protein-coupled receptors on target cells, influencing immune surveillance and inflammatory responses. While they are crucial for regular immune functioning, chemokines also contribute to the development and progression of disorders such as autoimmune diseases, chronic inflammation, allergies, and cancerous conditions.

Although efforts have been made since the early 2000s to target chemokines or their receptors, only a limited number of therapeutic agents have reached clinical application.

This Research Topic aims to delve into the complexities of chemokine pathways within the context of autoimmune diseases, seeking to unveil and address challenges that impede their therapeutic targeting.

Key objectives include analyzing the roles of chemokines in directing leukocyte movement and specific immune cell recruitment into organs. There is a considerable focus on deducing strategic approaches for modulating essential chemokines involved in disease mechanisms, while also confronting and proposing resolutions to the obstacles in transitioning experimental therapies to clinical settings.

To gather further insights into the therapeutic targeting of chemokines in autoimmune contexts, we welcome articles addressing, but not limited to, the following themes:

• Exploration of chemokine involvement in autoimmune disease pathogenesis

• Identification of critical, disease-specific chemokine axes within the complex and redundant chemokine network

• Design, development, and critical evaluation of targeted therapeutic strategies

• Assessment of the rationale for monotherapies versus combination approaches

• Bridging preclinical success to clinical translation: challenges and opportunities

• Presentation of novel and provocative hypotheses to stimulate scientific discourse

This Research Topic will accept various types of manuscripts. We encourage submissions of Original Research, Reviews, and Perspectives that push the boundaries of current understanding and propose innovative therapeutic paths.

Topic Editor Dr. Urs Christen declares the following conflicts of interest:

Immunic Therapeutics, Munich, Germany
Research collaboration 2017 - 2025

Idorsia Pharmaceuticals, Allschwil, Switzerland
Research collaboration 2018 - 2024

Dompe Pharmaceuticals, Milano, Italy
Research collaboration 2024 - 2025

Anaveon, Basel, Switzerland
Research collaboration 2025 - present

Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Cambridge, MA, USA
Research collaboration 2022 - present

Topic Editor Dr. Andrew Luster declares the following conflicts of interest:

Scientific Advisory Board for Human Immunology Biosciences (acquired by Biogen) (2022-2024).

Consultant for Sofinnova Partners (2022-2024).

Sponsored research agreements from Sanofi (2023-2024) and Visterra, Inc. (2024-2025).

Are you interested in contributing a manuscript to this Research Topic?

Chemokine pathway targeting in autoimmune diseases: Unraveling therapeutic efficacy and challenges